Tasmania is located at latitude 40° South, longitude 144° East, right in the pathway of the notorious "Roaring Forties" wind that encircles the globe.

By virtue that Tasmania is an island about the same size as Switzerland, the Irish Republic and West Virginia, surrounded by sea, the climate is a maritime one, rarely extremely hot or extremely cold.

The seasons are opposite to that of the Northern Hemisphere. Summer is from December to February when the average maximum temperature is 21° Celsius ( 70° Fahrenheit ). Winter is from June to August with an average maximum temperature of 12° Celsius ( 40° Fahrenheit ).

The annual rainfall varies from 626mm ( 24 inches ) in Hobart to 2400mm ( 95 inches ) on the west coast. The prevailing weather pattern is from west to east and creates a rain shadow in the same direction. The weather on the east coast is nearly always warmer and milder than the rest of the state. Rainfall is evenly distributed throughout the year. Hobart is Australia's second driest capital city after Adelaide.

Tasmania has four distinct seasons. Summer is warm with sunny days and mild evenings. The weather is more stable between the months of February and April, from mid summer to late autumn. Autumn provides the classical transition to winter with cool to frosty nights and clear cool days with deciduous trees displaying autumn colours and loosing leaves. Winter is characterised by sudden storms, shorter day light hours and snow on the higher peaks ( Mt Ossa 1617m / 5300 ft the highest ). Spring is the season shaking off winter with spring showers and new growth warming to summer.

All these factors contribute to the make-up of Tasmania and producing vegetation which is extremely diverse, from tall open eucalypt forest, alpine heathlands and large areas of cool temperate rainforests and moorlands. Many flora species are unique to Tasmania, and some are related to species in South America and New Zealand through ancestors which grew on the super continent Gondwanaland, 50 million years ago.

More than 20% of Tasmania has been listed with UNESCO as World Heritage Area, and the state has a total of 15 National Parks, with "Cradle Mountain - Lake St Clair National Park" the most well known. Tasmania is the last home of several mammals that once roamed the Australian continent. Nowhere else is it possible to see together in the wild the Tasmanian Devil, the eastern quoll and the spotted-tailed quoll.

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This site is maintained and developed by Salamanca Promotions Pty Ltd and was updated on 12 May, 2008.
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